Experienced meditators show reduced activity in brain regions linked to self-referential thought and mind-wandering, particularly the medial prefrontal and posterior cingulate cortices, across different meditation types. They also exhibit stronger connections between areas involved in self-monitoring and cognitive control, such as the posterior cingulate, dorsal anterior cingulate, and dorsolateral prefrontal cortices, both at rest and during meditation. These neural patterns align with decreased mind-wandering, offering insight into how meditation may support present-moment awareness and well-being.
The human cortex is organized into two broad systems: an extrinsic system that responds to external stimuli and tasks, and an intrinsic system linked to internal, self-related experiences. These systems typically show anti-correlated activity, even at rest. This experiment tested whether meditation can alter that competition. Participants either fixated without meditation or practiced non-dual awareness or focused attention meditations. Anti-correlation between the extrinsic and intrinsic systems was stronger during focused attention and weaker during non-dual awareness compared to fixation. Correlations within each system did not change. The results indicate that the anti-correlation between these systems is not fixed and that different meditation practices can modulate this functional brain organization in distinct ways.